Richard Antipuna, the Green Party candidate for City Commissioner has withdrawn from the contest. On the morning of Friday, August 12, Antipuna filed papers withdrawing from the November 8 General Election.

Richie Antipuna, www.richieantipuna.com, was faced with challenges to his nomination papers by attorneys representing two different Philadelphia clients. The challenges both charged that Richie had not changed his registration to Green Party prior to the May Primary Election, which decided candidates on the Democratic and Republican ballots. Both challenges claimed that Antipuna’s filing, therefore, did not meet Pennsylvania State election requirements.

Following his withdrawal, Richie Antipuna, who was interviewed while relaxing in his back-yard pool in Kensington, said, “I feel like the Ralph Nader of Philadelphia ,” referring to the 2004 Green Party candidate for President of the United States . Ralph Nader’s name was never allowed to appear on the ballot, and Pennsylvania ’s voters were never free to vote for him or against him. Many Democratic Party officials and their staff have been sentenced to jail for participating in the “bonusgate” challenge to Nader’s candidacy, which is still being litigated before the Pennsylvania courts.

“The Democrats and Republicans use the law to slap the little guy in the face,” charged Antipuna. “Anyone who leaves a major party to run for election is punished for leaving their party. Political parties in Philadelphia are like posses, street gangs from the 1980s. If you pull out of one posse, you get beat up by all of them.”

“This year, there are only ten people who are running as independents,” complained Antipuna. “They are using unjust laws that keep out other political bodies that want to get into the ring. It is meant to deter others, and I will applaud anyone who wants to get into the ring as a third party candidate.”

“I think Pennsylvania election law does not allow voters to have freedom of choice in our Commonwealth,” explained Antipuna. “It is obvious that they did not want Richie Antipuna in office because the political machine in Philadelphia gave me a slap on the wrist,” Antipuna said. “This won’t be the last time you hear from Richie Antipuna because I will not bow down to them.” Antipuna is forming a political committee to research his future options. He plans to remain an active Green Party member and may choose to run for election in 2012.

In conclusion, Antipuna said, “I wanted to change this system. If I had been elected to the City Commission, I would have worked to make elections fair and open.”